Phantom menace

Published: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 08:00 AM.

When Jim Greer, the former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, copped a guilty plea Monday to avoid a trial on charges he laundered money from party coffers, it was for many political junkies the equivalent of receiving socks and underwear on Christmas Day after anticipating a pony.

Greer resigned as RPOF chairman in January 2010 under intense pressure from GOP donors who were unhappy with the way the party was spending their money. Several prominent Republican legislators, including Marco Rubio, racked up more than $400,000 in questionable charges on their RPOF-issued credit cards. Distrust with Greer’s leadership was so bad that former Florida House Speaker (and Panama City native) Allan Bense was brought in to co-sign RPOF checks to reassure donors.

In June 2010, Greer was arrested and charged with six felony counts of grand theft, money laundering and fraud stemming from a grand jury investigation into his activities while serving as chairman. Prosecutors alleged that he set up a shell company, Victory Strategies, in February 2009 to funnel $125,000 from the state party into his personal bank account.

The prospect of a trial had politicos on both sides of the aisle nervous with anticipation of what Greer’s defense might reveal. As party chairman, he was privy to Republican spending habits and peccadilloes. Pre-trial depositions included allegations of prostitutes at a state GOP fundraiser in the Bahamas and lavish spending on restaurants and hotels by party officials. If not criminal, they at least could have proved embarrassing.

However, he also was hand-picked from relative obscurity to be chairman by then-Gov. Charlie Crist, who is now a Democrat and a potential opponent of Gov. Rick Scott in 2014. Greer’s conduct isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of Crist’s judgment, either.

Just before jury selection for that trial was to begin Monday, Greer pleaded guilty to four counts of theft and a single count of money laundering. He could be sentenced to 3½ years in prison. Greer left the courtroom without comment Monday, but his attorney said, “Sometimes clearing your name is not as important as taking care of your family.”

That fueled speculation about why Greer fell on his sword instead of taking everyone down with him in a blaze of salacious testimony, especially since he had maintained his innocence and claimed his prosecution was political payback. Let the conspiracy theories begin!

When Jim Greer, the former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, copped a guilty plea Monday to avoid a trial on charges he laundered money from party coffers, it was for many political junkies the equivalent of receiving socks and underwear on Christmas Day after anticipating a pony.

Greer resigned as RPOF chairman in January 2010 under intense pressure from GOP donors who were unhappy with the way the party was spending their money. Several prominent Republican legislators, including Marco Rubio, racked up more than $400,000 in questionable charges on their RPOF-issued credit cards. Distrust with Greer’s leadership was so bad that former Florida House Speaker (and Panama City native) Allan Bense was brought in to co-sign RPOF checks to reassure donors.

In June 2010, Greer was arrested and charged with six felony counts of grand theft, money laundering and fraud stemming from a grand jury investigation into his activities while serving as chairman. Prosecutors alleged that he set up a shell company, Victory Strategies, in February 2009 to funnel $125,000 from the state party into his personal bank account.

The prospect of a trial had politicos on both sides of the aisle nervous with anticipation of what Greer’s defense might reveal. As party chairman, he was privy to Republican spending habits and peccadilloes. Pre-trial depositions included allegations of prostitutes at a state GOP fundraiser in the Bahamas and lavish spending on restaurants and hotels by party officials. If not criminal, they at least could have proved embarrassing.

However, he also was hand-picked from relative obscurity to be chairman by then-Gov. Charlie Crist, who is now a Democrat and a potential opponent of Gov. Rick Scott in 2014. Greer’s conduct isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of Crist’s judgment, either.

Just before jury selection for that trial was to begin Monday, Greer pleaded guilty to four counts of theft and a single count of money laundering. He could be sentenced to 3½ years in prison. Greer left the courtroom without comment Monday, but his attorney said, “Sometimes clearing your name is not as important as taking care of your family.”

That fueled speculation about why Greer fell on his sword instead of taking everyone down with him in a blaze of salacious testimony, especially since he had maintained his innocence and claimed his prosecution was political payback. Let the conspiracy theories begin!

A Greer trial might have produced a lot of compelling copy and soundbites, but amidst all of the backstabbing we wonder how much unvarnished truth would have come out. Greer had a tarnished reputation even before he pleaded guilty to several felonies.

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